Creamy Chicken & Rice Soup

This soup was so delicious- it exceeded my expectations in levels of delicious-ness.  It was also very easy to make, and smelled sooo good while it was cooking.  You can use cooked chicken in this, but I didn't have any, so I just dropped in frozen (raw) chicken tenders when I added the broth.  At the end of the cooking time, the chicken was perfectly cooked and tender- I just shredded it apart with two forks.  Using evaporated milk is an easy, no-fuss, and less-fat way to thicken this soup.  We had these with fresh biscuits.  Everyone LOVED dinner and the soup and biscuits were all gone!  Sad for no leftovers for my lunch the next day!  :( 

Creamy Chicken & Rice Soup
from For the Love of Cooking

1 tsp of olive oil
1/2 small or medium onion, chopped
2-3 carrots, diced
2-3 stalks of celery, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
5 cups of homemade or storebought chicken stock
1/2 tsp chicken bouillon
1/2 tsp dried basil
Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste
1 bay leaf
1 cup (or more) cooked chicken breast, diced (Can add raw chicken right to the simmering broth & shred later)
1/2 cup long grain rice
1/2 cup of frozen sweet yellow corn, thawed
2 Tbsp corn starch
1 12 oz can evaporated milk

1.  Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots and celery once hot. Cook until tender, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add the minced garlic and stir constantly for 60 seconds. Add the chicken stock, diced (or raw) chicken, rice, bouillon, basil, sea salt, black pepper and bay leaf. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 15-20 minutes.

2.  Turn the soup up until it boils. Mix the corn starch and evaporated milk thoroughly in a bowl. Add the milk mixture to the boiling soup and stir. Lower the heat and add the corn. Mix thoroughly and simmer for a few more minutes. The soup will thicken as it sits. Enjoy.

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